Infinite Crossroads
by Cef Havoc
Summary: In 3 months after Xemnas' defeat, Sora, Riku and Kairi are once again entrusted to save the worlds. Add half-demons,Overlords, wizards and Spiral Knights to the mix and you have a surefire recipe for chaos! MULTIPLE X-OVERS!SEMI-CRACK!
1. Prologue

**~Prologue~**

In the halls of Disney Castle, down deep into the earth, lies the Cornerstone of Light. It pulsed faintly with a soft, white light, casting its protection upon the world. It was no wonder the people took such care of it, it was their protector, practically their heart.

A flash of light from the Cornerstone opened a portal, and out stepped two individuals.

The first figure was short, his voice cheerful, but carried a somewhat regal tone in his words. And he had recognizably large, round ears. King Mickey, Keyblade Master, apprenticed to Master Yen Sid, and ruler of Disney Kingdom.

The other, however, was tall, with silver-white hair, clothed in red, with an air of brashness around him. His very presence spoke of his importance, of a great purpose. He wasn't one to take disrespect or idle conversation, even though he himself is insolent to those he dislikes.

And right now he was not here for simple chit-chat.

"So, these three can handle it?" the red man asked, his eyebrow raised.

"Of course. I trust them, and I'm confident that they'll succeed." Mickey replied with a confident tone.

"Yeah, but they're... kinda young, aren't they?"

"They saved multiple worlds twice already. I know they're more than ready."

"Suit yourself. I'll be back in a month, alright? I'd rather see it firsthand, if you know what I mean."

And with that, he went through the still open portal, and with another flash of light, he was gone, leaving the king alone in the chamber..

Inside the safety of his study, King Mickey collapsed on his chair and sighed. Truth be told, he was more than a little worried about 'them'. So young, yet already fighting for the fate of the worlds. He looked at the picture they took from the last time they've been together.

A brown-haired boy in colorfully black clothes, a silver-haired young man with a white vest and dark shirt, and a girl with red hair wearing a pink dress smiled back at him, happy to be home, but always ready for adventure.

_Sora, Riku, Kairi, I'm sorry, but the worlds need you again..._

He remembered the joy of seeing Sora and Riku breaking the surface of the water upon their return, he'd never felt so light-hearted. Everything about them just yelled out to him that they were home, right where they belonged. And now... now they would have to leave again.

**~End~**


	2. First Chapter: Who is WHAT now!

**~Chapter 1: Who is WHAT now?~**

"This is the life, eh Riku?" Sora sighed as they got off their boat on the small island where they hang out. It was Friday, and they just got out from the Hellhole, AKA Destiny Islands High, and were waiting for Kairi, who had to stay behind for her duties as a member of the Student Council.

"Sure is. But I hope Kairi gets here fast, though. We only have, what, an hour and a half left before sundown?"

"Big deal, we have the whole weekend to ourselves!" Sora retorted, the hints of laughter in his voice. Riku couldn't help but agree, though. "Fine, you're right. Time to relax, then."

Ever since they returned to Destiny Islands three months ago after defeating Xemnas, things have been relatively peaceful. It was quickly discovered that Namine and Roxas hadn't just been absorbed into Sora and Kairi's consciousnesses, they were still separate. The two Nobodies were able to communicate mentally with their Somebodies, leading to a few awkward situations when Roxas managed to agitate Sora enough to make him yell out loud. So all in all, it was relatively peaceful on the islands.

Emphasis on 'relatively'.

For one thing, it seems like since their return, Nobodies had been spawning all over the place and had been following them around like a rather large pack of lost puppies. Which, of course, spawned a village-wide panic at the sight of the 'white jacket monsters', thanks to Selphie's hysterical ramblings. At least Tidus and Wakka found it hilarious that the 'Wonder Trio', as they were known here, managed to get a whole army of jackets at their beck and call since they disappeared. Not that it was all bad though. But it is rather unsettling to find a Sniper hanging upside-down and handing you the book you forgot at home. But Namine assured the trio that they were all simply grateful for Xemnas' defeat, since the word of his betrayal to all Nobodies had been spreading even before they had visited The World That Never Was. Which explained why it had been devoid of everything but Heartless outside the castle.

Quieting the village down hadn't been an easy task, not by any means. It had taken a great deal of persuasion just to get the villagers to put down their weapons, then a good few days of explanations about how the Nobodies weren't there to hurt them. They'd had to get the Nobodies to agree to not cause problems, even help out a little occasionally, to get the villagers to just let them be.

Speaking of Nobodies...

Roxas was bored. He sat in the middle of the Station, where his and Sora's figure was shown along with a colorful green and blue mosaic of Destiny Islands. It had been like this ever since they 'merged'. But the thing that usually bothered him was that he was still shown, even though he's not supposed to exist at all!

But now, he was just too bored and pissed to think about that small detail.

He was bored and irritated primarily because of the horribly long, drawn out, pointless and irritating lecture of the coconut and fish trade here in D.I. they were forced to endure.

'They', meaning the 5 of them. Namine and himself included. Both of them managed to retain their own personalities within their Others, and could even project themselves in a solid form occasionally. And, for some reason, his and Sora's memories were merging slightly. They tried asking Namine, but even she herself was confused. It led to a little strangeness concerning Riku too, after all, Sora was getting Roxas' memories of him during his time asleep. Though Riku tried to assure them that it was the only way to save both of the without too much trauma, Roxas still felt uneasy around Riku. Which kinda sucks for them. But they're slowly getting used to it, as they notice that Riku was developing a tendency to make rather questionable decisions and actions for his friends.

But all of them agreed that getting proper education was their first priority as of this moment. Even Sora, who saying he's stupid was, in Riku's opinion, a compliment.

(The chase following that comment earned Riku a black eye, ripped shirt, and his fangirls having a field day after Sora announced his precence in the area.)

Thus, this situation with the lecture.

'_Not even Saix, or even MANSEX was THAT _cruel!_ And the homework? I'd rather be back in the XIII than going through this!'_

And with that, he decided that the Station could do for a few minutes, give or take an hour if he was lucky, without him, and merged back with Sora's consciousness.

'_Hey Sora, mind letting me out for a while? I swear, that lecture worse than Saix's reports.'_

Sora shuddered.

"_Yeah, I'd rather face off all thirteen of you that go through THAT lecture again..."_

He pictured Roxas nodding in agreement. It was getting easier to accept that his 'twin' lived in his head. And that the three of them basically controlled an army of 'living jackets'. And that they all have the most powerful weapon in the universe in their disposal. It seemed like destiny deemed three teenagers worthy and responsible enough to wield a weapon of ultimate power, with the ability to save or destroy worlds and lock or unlock anything. Sora had to endure a few annoying idea's from Tidus concerning that fact and a locked door to the girl's locker room. Wakka didn't help manners and the two (or three) girls in their group glared at him and Riku the whole day following that.

Life's crazy like that.

"SORA!" Riku yelled in his ear, causing the spiky-haired boy to yelp out in pain.

After Sora stopped cussing Riku out, he asked why he did that.

Riku's reply?

"You were spacing out, so I though I should bring you back to the land of the living before anyone else thinks you're totally brain dead."

"Oh."

"Not like there's much difference..."

"HEY!"

"Just kidding, _midget_." Riku grinned, ducking a wild swipe from his best friend, and the chase was on.

After a long chase that ended when Sora caught Riku and gave him a Wet Willy, they ended up in the islands they used to play in.

Sora took his time just admiring the waves until he noticed Riku was nowhere to be found. There was only one place he knew his best friend would end up in here:

The old Paopu tree.

After a touching scene from the two, (A/N: If you're a KH fan, you should know this by now, and if you're not, why the hell are you here?), Kairi finally made her appearance, with a letter in a bottle in hand.

And this particular letter had King Mickey's official seal on it.

Roxas voiced out what everyone was thinking, with a simple:

"_Not another crisis!"_

_To Sora, Riku, and Kairi:_

_I'm sorry if it seems so sudden, but it looks like the worlds are in danger yet again. Master Yen Sid had been watching over some other prominent worlds and discovered that there may be more than one Princess of Heart. And it seems like there are factions acting upon getting all of them for the sake of power. We're not sure if they're working with each other or against each other, but to be safe, Master Yen Sid and I have decided to take you up as official Keyblade Apprentices._

_Around 10 years ago, there used to be a world dedicated to training those that have the ability to wield the Keyblade, but sadly it was destroyed because of one man's twisted ambitions. The worst part is that he may still be alive._

"WHAT?" Sora yelled incredulously, before Kairi told him to shut up and read the rest of the letter. Riku remained silent, but he grew a shade paler than usual.

_I can't reveal his name to you yet, because it involves several secrets I'm not sure you can handle yet_ ("Yeah right," Sora commented smugly while the other two just rolled their eyes at his immaturity), _but trust me, in due time I'll tell you everything._

_I'll be sending Donald and Goofy over to pick you guys up in a week to give you time to prepare. Until then, I suggest practicing your skills a bit._

_King Mickey Mouse._

And another letter slipped out from the parchment.

It was for Sora.

And as the Keyblade Weilder read his own letter, his face went from surprised, to angry, shocked, sad, and finally, resigned.

The letter fell to the ground from Sora's hands.

"I-I... I'm going home. I'm tired... so I'll just see you tomorrow, then." He tried, and failed, to give them a reassuring smile, and left the island. Kairi and Riku could tell beyond the failed smile, something was bothering Sora. His shoulders slumped down as he walked, and instead of the carefree way he'd put his hands behind his head, they were shoved into his pockets as he walked.

Kairi picked up the letter, she and Riku read the contents. Their reactions matched Sora's, ranging from anger to sadness, then to resigned.

Three friends, all broken apart, their stories eeriely similar to their own...

Later that night, all three of them found it hard to sleep, and their thoughts kept going back to the letter King Mickey sent to them. The knowledge was just so much to absorb, so life changing. They'd earned a rest hadn't they? They'd earned their right to come back home and stay. But no, they had to go through it again, save more worlds. They could refuse, there was always that option. But of course they wouldn't, Sora would hate himself for doing nothing to help when he normally could, Kairi just couldn't let herself sit by and do nothing either, and Riku... hardly anyone could tell how Riku thought.

So their minds wondered all night.

About the task assigned to Sora.

About the betrayal, loss, and grief that was brought to the worlds by one man.

Master Xehanort.

And all three of them wondered how much more he'd do if his plans went through.

**~End~**


	3. Second Chapter: How do I explain THIS!

Blaaaaaaaaargh, so busy. Add Shikamaru's Block (combination of Writer's Block and SHEER LAZINESS), and getting into one of the toughest schools in my country, I've got nothing else to say here.

So... Since this is , I don't feel like adding discalimers, but will do so anyway for teh LULZ.

**DISCALIMER:** I Don't own Kingdom Hearts or anything else that is referenced and crossed over with here. I take liberties in kidna- uh... 'borrowing'... the characters for my little shenanigans~ 3

**~Chapter 2: How do I explain **_**THIS**_**?~**

_We all share the same dream..._

_Yeah..._

__!_

_No! _ would never do that!_

**Wake up...**

Morning came too early for Sora. That letter left them sleepless, thinking of what happened 10 years ago, what COULD have happened to them. He stayed still for a few minutes, not wanting to move and deal with what the day would bring, but eventually he realized he had to move, he really had to go to the bathroom...

*THWUMP*

… and falling out of the bed provided a nice distraction from his thoughts.

Muttering several curse words under his breath and rubbing the sore spot on his head, Sora reluctantly got up and looked out the window. Sun shining, sky blue, birds singling, the tangy salt smell of the ocean carried by the wind drifting through the window. It looked like another sunny day in the island paradise...

"Sora?" Came the familiar voice of a woman from downstairs.

Oh...

SHIT!

"_I COMPLETELY FORGOT! HOW THE HECK AM I SUPOSSED TO TELL MOM ABOUT THIS?"_

When you've traveled around without parental guidance saving the worlds, you tend to forget about them once you get home. Sure it was fun, not having to go to bed at a certain time, eating whatever he wanted, not having someone constantly worrying over what you were doing. But then he came back.

Which then leads to the dillema:

How do you tell them that you're leaving AGAIN?

"Kairi? Kairi... Are you awake? Breakfast is ready!" Came an older female voice through the door.

"Y-yeah, mom!"

Kairi faced a similar dilemma, only she'd been thinking about it since last night, seeing as she had the advantage, or disadvantage, of actually being around her parents the past year. Or past two years, if you counted the time Destiny Islands had disappeared. Which was something she'd rather not remember.

"_What do I do now? How do I explain this to them?"_

'_How about telling the truth?'_ A soft voice whispered from her heart. Kairi frowned.

"_If I told them the truth, they'd lock me up even tighter than they already are, Nami..."_

She could almost see the shy Nobody blush in embarrassment as she apologized to her Other. Truth be told, ever since she came back from being kidnapped, her parents had enforced strict curfews and had almost banned her from going off with her friends to 'their' island. In fact, they seemed to think that it was all Sora and Riku's fault that she had disappeared in the first place, simply because she when returned she brought back the two missing boys. Naturally, since the three were best friends, they though their 'precious jewel' had run off looking for those 'good-for-nothing slackers'.

"Kairi!" Came her mother's persistent voice

"Coming, mom!" Kairi replied

Hopefully by this afternoon she'd have figured out what to tell them.

Hopefully.

So it was with a bit of guilt that Kairi dragged her feet down to breakfast. It was like usual, her father was sitting at the head of the table, a newspaper hiding his face from her, a plate of half-eaten food in front of him. Her mother just sitting down to her own plate of food, and both carefully watching her as she sat.

"So... Just what do you have planned for today?" her mother asked, casually raising her food to her mouth with her fork.

"Nothing much." Kairi responded.

"Spending time with those slackers?" her father asked, his voice laced with obvious contempt.

"They're not slackers." Kairi replied, her voice showing just how routine the conversation was.

"They go missing for a whole year, then drag you into whatever they were doing."

"They're not slackers, and they're not trouble." Kairi replied, standing up from her barely touched plate. She calmly left, slamming the door shut on her way out.

Maybe she didn't even have to tell them when she left?

The house was empty, save for one person. Just as it was the past three months. And Riku was as alone, just as he had been in the past three months. The three months when he found out that had Grandpa died a few days before they came back.

Three months of missing the only parent he's ever known.

To be fair, he never knew that he had been sick. That Grandpa never told him about the sickness that ate him inside out and that his time was running out. That Grandpa had tried to hang on every day for more than a year to see him come back safe and sound. To see his surrogate grandson just before he died.

Every day, every hour in this house was just as painful as the last for the past three months. And Riku spent as much time away from it as he could, just to stave off the empty feeling in his chest every time he comes home, the home where Grandpa's scent lingered; so much like the sweet tobacco he smoked almost religiously every night before they went to bed.

He had no one to talk to about his new found apprenticeship. No one to worry about their reaction to the news.

Somehow, he'd rather spend the whole day fretting and making excuses than be alone any longer in the house.

He looked at the empty living room one more time on his way out, a small gust of sweet-smoky air greeting his nose as it closed.

*SHA-TZ!*

"EEEEEEEEEEK!"

Selphie screamed as a small, white creature suddenly appeared in front of her, its weird little head turning this way and that, as if looking for something. Wakka just rolled his eyes while Tidus held back a snicker. No matter how many times they saw it, it was always amusing. No matter how often they were around, it always seemed to take Selphie by surprise when a Nobody showed up. They didn't know how, but her hair seemed to stand on end whenever she screamed in surprise.

"?" Sora gasped, trying to catch his breath from running as fast as he could towards the source of the scream.

Well, he could have used his Dash ability, but that would have scared more people than necessary. He didn't want a repeat of what happened when he used his Air Dodge to retrieve a balloon in stuck in a tree for a little girl... The succeeding panic wasn't worth it, though a new fanclub for him has been started by the same little girl, most of the members young kids. None of them can decide if it was endearing or creepy.

"I just can't get used to these things!" Selphie huffed, as the Creeper hopped away, apparently not finding what it was looking for in the area.

"Really? I sorta did after a short while..." mused Tidus, unfazed when a Sniper suddenly appeared behind Sora, who was similarly unfazed of its sudden appearance and simply thanked it for giving him his wallet that he left in his room. Selphie simply screamed again, and Wakka just stared.

"What?" Sora demanded, "I left my wallet! Mum probably asked him to take it to me!"

"Only you, Sora... Only you..." Riku muttered as he arrived, shaking his head at the absurdity of it all. Here he was, a Keyblade master, accepting his wallet from a creature that had been his enemy a scant few months before, and accepting it as though it happened every day. Though knowing Sora, it probably did. Leaving his stuff and having a Nobody bring it to him the past few months, that is. Then again, how could an enemy becoming an ally and friend have been much different? Nothing seemed out of the ordinary for him anymore.

"So anyway, what was with you guys yesterday? When you came back from the island, you were all acting emo! Well, Riku more than usual anyway..." Selphie trailed off, oblivious to the glare of the silver-haired youth when she called him emo.

Then, a second later, the two Keyblade Weilders had the same 'OH SHIT' look in their faces, causing Selphie to grin rather sinisterly.

"Ok, NOW I'm curious! SPILL IT! What happened?" She demanded, edging closer and closer to the boys in a direct violation of personal space kind of way...

Until she came face-to-face with an upside-down sniper.

"Three..." Wakka counted, bracing himself.

"Two..." Tidus added, covering his ears.

"One." Riku rounded off in a disinterested tone.

"!"

"She always did have a nice pair of lungs..." Riku deadpanned, rubbing his ears as he watched her figure fleeing from the scene. Then he turned to the Sora and the Nobody.

"What did you leave this time?" He asked.

Or he would have, if not for the Sniper handing him a small container with a few sandwiches in it before saluting and teleporting away. Riku stared at the box for a few seconds more before sending Sora an inquiring gaze.

"It's from mom. She thinks you're not getting enough to eat."

"Ah... Ok then..."

Kairi was in a bad mood. Scratch that, she's in a HORRIBLE mood. Mostly because of her parents.

It's not that they were bad people, on the contrary, they were very nice people. Her Dad, the Mayor of their town was accomodating, friendly, and is always ready to contribute to the society. Her mom was strict, but fair in her own way, and was quite a good singer.

If ONLY they weren't so GODDAMN TRADITIONAL.

In fact, the only reason they dislike her friends was the fact that they 'encourage' her to act 'improperly', as opposed to acting like the 'proper young lady' she 'should' be.

Which involved sewing, cooking, learning how to sing and play the piano, cleaning, and looking pretty.

All of which, while she doesn't hate and finds sort of useful, save for the last one, can be so ANNOYING when the nagging for it was taken too far. ESPECIALLY for the last one.

It was only because she promised to meet Mrs. Kajiura, better known as Sora's mom, and ask her for advice, that they agreed to let her go. They though that she'd be asking 'girly' questions.

Which was true, in a way.

Only she'd ask her stuff more along the lines of 'How do I make my parents see that I DON'T want to be a pampered princess and that I WANT to go on adventures?'

_I still feel kinda guilty... _Namine voiced out, the words barely more than a whisper.

_I'm not. I want them to see the real me. I don't want to hide anymore. I'm not some pampered princess doll just waiting to be rescued again and again!_ Kairi hissed, causing the shy blonde girl to recede further in the red-head's mind. Immediately, Kairi regretted lashing out to her Nobody, as she was still sensitive to her time in Castle Oblivion, or so she surmised.

_Nami? Oh, God, I'm sorry..._

_I-it's alright. You didn't mean to..._

Before Kairi could apologise further to Namine, a piercing shriek cut through the air, and a moment later, Selphie came running past, almost running into Kairi in the process, and just went going and going and going until the Nobody and her Other could no longer see her. But her screams remain.

… _I guess she saw another Nobody..._ Kairi observed, a hint of sarcasm underlining her thoughts.

… _I hope she never sees me... She might freak out so much she'll get a heart attack... _Namine whispered from her hiding place somewhere between Kairi's scant memories of her Grandma and the plentiful memories of her favorite teddy bear she ducked into for comfort.

… _I think she already saw Rox..._ Kairi mused, as they made their way to the direction Selphie came from.

_No she didn't... I think we would have heard her gossiping non-stop about it by now if she did..._ Namine argued in her soft, shy way.

_Oh yeah... _

And Namine, from her hiding place, suddenly spotted an interesting, half-forgotten memory from Kairi's childhood, and started prodding at it...

_Fear, replaced by awe. A gentle voice reassuring her._

Kairi was startled at the sudden recollection. Inwardly, she sought out her Nobody and asked, _Uh, Nami? What are you doing?_

Nami blushed, and murmured back,_ It looks interesting..._, while prying apart the fog clouding the memory.

_Oh. OK, carry on. Maybe we'll both remember something good afterwards! And... I really am sorry about that._

_It's fine,_ replied the shy blonde, smiling now as her curious new project seemed more and more interesting the more she observed. Somehow, working with people's memories always cheered her up. Might have something to do with the ethreal sketchpad and pastels that show up by her side when she does...

And for Kairi, the thought of rediscovering something from her childhood had significally brightened her mood. To find a lead to her origins... Maybe the memory they unearth would help her convince her parents!

She started walking with a slight skip in her steps and a small smile in her face.

Maybe she'll find out where she's from, and why her recent dreams involved a person with blue hair...

"... You get it?" Riku inquired, as the whole group sat gathered in the bigger treehouse of 'their' island. Selphie had finally rejoined them fifteen minutes after everyone had arrived in the island, fuming and upset over the fact they left her, conveniently forgetting that she had run off after three straight Nobody encounters.

"Soooooooo... Lemme get this straight..." Tidus sounds off, voicing the thoughts of the other two kids in their group that didn't have unusual abilities, " You want us to help you think of a good enough excuse to let your-" Tidus points at Kairi and Sora, "-parents let you run off to some tower with an old wizard guy and learn magic there for an indefinite period of time?"

"Pretty much!" Sora replies in his usual cheerful way. None of the others could ever decide if Sora's upbeat attitude was real, a false front, or just a product of his thick-headedness. Deep inside though, they think it's mostly the third one.

The 'normal' half of the gang looked at each other, then at the Keybade Weilders, then back at each other. And then identical grins spread across their faces.

The decision was unanimous.

"Count us in!"

"Alien abduction?"

"Nope." was Riku's reply.

"You're actually spies?"

"Uh..." Secretly, Sora liked it, but it's obvious that the other two didn't agree.

"I'll take that as a 'no'. How about kidnapping!"

"SELPHIE!" Kairi admonished, as she still has issues over the times she was captured.

"OK, fine! Bad idea!" Selphie pouted. So far her ideas... well... weren't appropriate. Or realistic. Or even slightly believable.

Wakka decided to just NOT tell them, which earned a glare from everyone. But when Tidus suggested the truth, Kairi really flipped out on the faux-blonde, telling him that the whole point of the meeting was to prevent the parents from finding out. When she reminded them what her mom did when she disapeared, the rest of the group shuddered. An angry Mrs. Noriyuki was a frightening sight.

No one wanted a repeat of what happened when the three returned home. But one thing's for certain, that woman had a rather remarkable set of pipes.

More arguments and suggestions were thrown about. From Mafia to giant robots to magic, ideas both colorful and outlandish were shared, pondedred on, and subsequently rejected. When Wakka suggested that they're trying to hide from the same guys that kidnapped them, or so their public story went, the rest seemed to agree, until Riku pointed out that it mght just encourage the Noriyuki couple to keep a tighter leash on their 'princess'.

During all the discussions, one person kept unusually quiet. He didn't share suggestions, and only half listened to the suggestions, all with a thoughtful look in his face.

When they decided to call it a day, still with no concrete plan, Sora still had that thoughtful look in his face.

And if you could see into his heart, you'll find that Roxas too had the same look.

'_Just breath Sora, just breath."_ The boy told himself as he stood outside the doorway to the living room where his mom sat on the couch.

"Mom." Sora said cautiously, walking into the room.

"Yes Sora?" Corine looked up from the picture she had been sketching.

"Um…." Sora scratched the back of his head, "Do you remember when dad used to take those really long fishing trips?"

The sound of pencil scratching against paper stopped as Corine gave her son her full attention.

"Yes, I do."

"Well… I know you never liked him being away for so long. I didn't either." Suddenly, Sora found his feet to be very interesting, "But…. Something's happened. I really gotta do something, and I have to leave for a while to do it. I don't know when I'll be coming back either."

Corine looked at Sora carefully for a few seconds before setting her work down on the coffee table and standing up. She guided Sora to a chair and sat him down. She took the one opposite him and looked him straight in the eye.

"Sora." She spoke in a calm yet commanding voice, "What's going on?"

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuh..."

Crap, Sora thought. He finally lost his nerve under his mom's gentle, but stern stare. The kind that mothers make when they catch their kids trying to sneak a cookie out of the jar. The kind that makes you feel so guilty that you're willing to confess to anything and everything just to get it to stop.

Not trusting his voice, he thrust the letter addressed to the three of them into her hands. He'd rather not have her read the list of atrocities that Xehanort inflicted to the worlds. It might give her a heart attack.

And as her eyes progressed down the page, growing wider and wider, Sora's heart fell lower and lower until he could swear that it was sitting above his stomach.

And when his mom faced him with an unreadable expression oh her face, he asked Roxas, "Did I really do the right thing?"

Roxas' silence spoke for both of them at that moment.

Beams of sunlight fell through the window on Kairi's open eyes. Another restless night, and though it was past 8 in the morning, she still hasn't gotten up. As she feigned a stomachache last night, they let her sleep in, though it didn't to any good. At this point, Kairi's so nervous she thought she might throw up. Still no excuse, and even though their departure is still a week away, she felt sick at the thought of hiding the truth from them for that long. She HAD to find a way to tell them the truth without her parents panicking.

She sighed, and got ready for the day, all while thinking:

_This might be my only chance to find more about myself, where I came from, and who I really am..._

Somewhere in her heart, Namine was still busy reviving that half-forgotten memory... And though still vague, it was starting to form a semi-solid recollection... Which Kairi experienced as she looked into the mirror...

_Fatigue from running, throat hoarse from screaming, total utter fear. The sound of metal meeting something solid, a kind face, a gentle voice reassuring her..._

_Blue hair..._

_Fear replaced by awe. And a warm feeling from her hand as it closed upon... ?_

The rest was too blurred. But it was enough to spur the two onwards. Kairi to face her parents, and Namine to learn more.

Kairi took a deep breath, braced herself, and opened the door...

And came face to face with a grinning Sora.

Kairi jumped back with a startled "EEK!", and Namine nearly dropped her 'project' on the rose-colored, wave-patterned mosaic floor of their heartscape.

"W-What are you doi-" She started, but Sora cut her off, saying " No time! C'mon!" and half dragged her down the hall, towards the stairs that led into the living room...

Into the sight of Sora's mom talking to her parents.

Sora motioned her follow him quietly down the stairs, where he ducked down with a silly grin on his face, ooking at the adults and obviously listening in to the conversation. Kairi rolled her eyes and followed suit.

"-so from what my son says, it was enough to earn them a scholarship!" the strawberry-blonde beamed, obviously happy over the arrangement.

Kairi blinked, then looked at the boy beside her. Yep, still wearing that big, goofy grin. And Kairi was now sporting the same as she heard her parents gush about how their princess was so brave and strong and smart and-

Wait... brave? Strong?

She felt her smile slide off, replaced with a small frown.

"What did you tell your mom-?" she hissed at her friend.

"I- Just listen first, all right?" Sora hissed back, missing rest of the conversation.

"Kairi!"

Kair nearly fell down the rest of the stairs from shock when her mother called her.

"C-Coming!" She replied, hopping down the rest of the way with Sora following her, still with that silly grin on his face.

This... is just CRAZY... The white-haired teen thought, as he eavesdropped from the window outside the Mayor's house. When he saw Sora and his mom head there, he got curious. So he followed them while keeping out of sight so he wouldn't be invited along. He was curious, but not stupid enough to not see that the Noriyukis HATE him. And then he saw, or rather, heard it. Mrs. Kajiura, Sora's MOM, actually did it. And by 'it', he meant 'convinced Kairi's parents to let her go on the pretense that she got a scholarship for FENCING, of all things, along with Sora and himself'.

That woman was NOT NORMAL. In a GOOD way. And she made pretty damn good cookies. Can't forget that.

And to think he forgot why he used to want to be Sora's brother, if only to have Corine Kajiura as his mom.

This... is CRAZY... the red-haired Princess thought.

And the worst part? It actually WORKED!

And it had to be FENCING, of all things! She shot a glare at her brunette friend, who was looking out the window, as if the clouds were the most interesting thing to look at, instead of the weirdness of the situation here.

"Kairi?"

Said red-head gulped, and put on her best 'I'm a GOOD girl' face for her parents.

"Yes, mom?"

"Why didn't you tell us you were in a scholarship for your fencing skills?"

_The same reason I would never tell you I'm a weilder of the most powerfully destructive and silly-looking weapons in the universe..._, thought Kairi, but she simply settled for a simple statement that, along with her falsely serene smile, betrayed her feelings.

"I thought you considered such things... 'unbecoming'... of me..."

Riku winced at the statement. When Kairi wanted to, she could make some of the cruelest statements, even if she didn't mean it.

He snuck another look at the living room, and saw the shocked faces of her family. He they would take this piece of news easily, because even if they were overbearingly protective, he knew they cared for Kairi almost more than they care about themselves.

And he knew that Kairi loved them that much as well.

It would KILL them if things progressed in a downward spiral from here.

"Riku?"

The white-haired youth choked back a yelp as Tidus spotted him.

"What are y-" He was cut off by a hand on his mouth and a shushing noise by the Keyblade weilder, and motioned him to just shut up and listen to the discussion between the families, which had started up again in glorious pandemonium.

Later that afternoon, Kairi was in a considerably good mood. Even though her parents was appalled at her mannerisims, she found that she couldn't care less. With that simple statement, it was as if a dam had broken inside her. She ranted on and on, talking about how... dissatisfied she was about her upbringing, how she hated being so restricted. Her parents were understandably shocked, while Mrs. Kajiura's face remained impassive. Sora on the other had had gaped, apparently torn between cheering for her and trying to get her to cool down.

Let it be said that even those with the purest hearts can get fed up every now and then. And Kairi was.

When they met up later on with Riku and the others, Kairi was beaming, Sora was confused, and Riku and Tidus looked... kind of like they lost the winds on their sails or something.

With a smile and a cheerful tone in her voice, she said:

"We're good! And I got my curfew extended for my training!"

Everyone, save for Sora, seeing as Riku and Tidus didn't stick around to listen to Kairi blow up, was, undertandably, flabbergasted. Wakka summed their thoughts up with a simple:

"Unreal..."

"Hm?"

A letter had appeared on his desk in a small stream of sparkles. His partners jumped at the sight, not knowing if it was threatening or not. With a careless wave of the hand, he assured that it was safe to open.

It was a letter from his... new 'client', he supposed that was the proper way to refer to him.

His eyes scanned the letter briefly. It was simply a reminder of the date he would come by and do his job. He would have dumped the letter, envelope and all, in the trash can already until he spotted a picture sticking out. The last part of the letter DID say that he'd give him a picture of the three kids he was supposed to protect then.

And when he saw the faces of the trio, his eyes widened.

He then decided that he and King Mickey need to talk RIGHT NOW about the three. Most ESPECIALLY about one specific member of the trio.

**~End~**

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand done. I edited the previous chapters a bit to make it flow better and all that as well, so you might wanna check them out.

Here's a little extra, as a christmas present to you guys:

_~Sora makes Riku eat his words~_

Sora, as usual, was grinning like an idiot. No surprises there. But the unusual thing was that it was a smug smile, and that Riku was gaping at a pic his friend handed over to him.

" Bu-bu-but-!" Riku stammered.

"I tooooooooooo~old you, but you wouldn't LISTEN~" Sora sing-songed.

"BUT THAT MEANS-!"

"Yeah, you're on the Naughty List for the next few years, for all that crap you pulled. Not to mention you've been there ever since you accidentally lit Mr. Kojima's cat's tail on fire and didn't tell anyone."

Riku found that he couldn't come up with a single retort.

That incident with the cat, followed with a rather bland Christmas, was why he stopped believing in Santa. And it was all his fault.

Riku spent most of the afternoon sulking, and some people have said that they heard him saying something about a list.


	4. Why Kairi should NEVER learn

**DISCLAIMER:** I don't own anything! Like the rest of you, I kidnap the characs to do my bidding instead! Oh CRAP, did I just say that out loud?

**~Chapter 3: Why Kairi should NEVER learn Fire spells first~ **

_Can you feel it?_

_The _..._

_Sinister laughter, a heart filled with dread..._

_A familiar, sinister face peering out, radiating malice and burning with the desire to see the worlds burn._

_Desparation..._

_And determination._

"Can you feel it? Your magic, I mean..." Riku's calm voice roused Kairi from her meditative trance.

"... I guess... But I dunno... What AM I supposed to feel?" She pouted. They woke up extra early so she can start learning Magic, yet she's been here for HOURS, and she STILL can't get a good feel for it. Save for the small nagging in her mind that she's missing something obvious, something in front of her that she isn't seeing...

"Merlin and Donald told me that everyone's magic feels differently for everyone. Mine sorta feels like I'm flying..." Sora trailed off, a slight blush on his face. He remembered how that went, when his Magic was awakened. It had been a wonderful feeling, but he only realized what it was when he ended up in Neverland and learned how to fly.

"Really?" Riku inquired. He himself felt his magic like it was a wild thing behind a stone wall, only unleashed when needed. It was never a comfortable thing to use, and he had a nasty feeling it was all a certain Heartless' fault.

One of his better kept secrets, something he swears he'd get fixed one day.

Meanwhile, Kairi's frown deepened. What was she missing? They were all here, in their island, the usual sand, sky and sea surruounding it... What was wrong? What is she missing?

_Wait..._

She closed her eyes again.

Waited.

And felt a soft pulsing.

No, not pulsing...

It felt more like... a wave, like an ocean's tides within her...

And she felt the familiar, wonderful feeling of the water around her, washing all around her, the liquid coolness pleasant on her skin...

The ocean of her magic, cool and inviting, greeted her. She could almost taste the salty tang of the ocean now, and realized, at last, why she didn't notce at first. Why look for something that's always been with her?

"Can you feel it now?" Sora's question echoed from somewhere far away, even though she knew he was close by.

"Y-yeah! It... feels nice..."

"Ok, now think of fire!" the brunette exclaimed.

Wait,** fire?**

And the moment the thought crossed her mind, She smelt smoke and heard Sora screaming. Alarmed, she opened her eyes and found him running around in a panic, the sleeve of his shirt on fire. Riku was alternately swearing and yelling "STOP DROP AND ROLL! STOP DROP AND ROLL!"

Kairi squeaked, and started trying to think of a way to extinguish the flames...

...And without any warning, a huge torrent of water assulted them from above, drenching the trio from head to toe. No words were spoken for a few minutes, whit everyone busy trying to dry off and figuring out just what the heck just happened.

"Kairi?" Riku coughed out after a few minutes.

"Yes...?"

"You can stop using your Magic now..." Riku deadpanned, and the Princess blushed, embarassed.

Sora, however, looked excited.

"Woah, your Magic is STRONG! Even I didn't get the hang of casting spells at first, and you got it in your first try!" He exclaimed, causing Kairi's blush to deepen.

"Only next time... can you please not set me on fire?" He requested, and Kairi felt like sinking into the sand in emberassment.

After they dried off and Kairi's aura faded, they started discussing spells and 'tricks' to share with Kairi, though it was a unanimous decision that Fire spells should be saved for later. They decided on the following spells: **Reflect, Cure, Ice, Thunder, Magnet, Aero, Gravity** and** Fire**, in that order. They all agreed to save the 'tricks' for later when Kairi's strong enough for some of the harder ones, but for now they chose the simplest one to do,** Strike Raid**. All you really needed there is a strong arm, good aim, and the common ability to re-summon your Keyblade.

Now comes the hard part: Making sure Kairi's OBVIOUSLY powerful magic does not cause the destruction of the island.

"Ok, I'm ready!" Kairi announced from a short distance away. Sora held a rock in his hand, muscles tensed up for the throw.

"GO!" Riku yelled, and the rock flew true, aimed at Kairi's general direction. In a span of a few seconds, the following happened: Kairi smiled, and a near-invisible barrier formed around her. The rock stopped a few inches from her face, and for a moment, an uncommon occurance happened: the rock seemed to be absorbed into the barrier itself, instead of hovering for a fraction of a second as it should be. But before anyone could comment, or even notice this strange phenomena, the rock reappeared with a vengance, hurtling at breakneck speeds towards Sora's general direction. Sora's insticts screamed at him to move to the side before the rock projectile got too close. Following his gut feeling, he did so, just as the small rock struck the tree behing him, went through it and another tree, and was finally sudued when it pulvurized itself on the cliffside.

All that happened before Riku could even blink. In fact, Riku would swear afterwards that if he HAD blinked, he would have missed it.

"Woah..." Sora gaped, fascinated, even though the magic-propelled rock nearly killed him. Even Riku's jaw dropped at the sheer force of her Reflect barrier returned the attack. Kairi herself though was afraid, as her friend nearly lost his head to her magic. But even she thought that it was pretty damn impressively potent.

Sora was the first to speak. "I sure pity the guy who comes across your **Reflect**, Kairi. Good thing I didn't cast one myself..."

"Why?" Kairi inquired, as she too was curious that Sora dodged even though he taught her the spell in the first place. It was Riku who answered for her though.

"Can you imagine the sheer destruction it would cause if that rock was powered by TWO **Reflects**? And that's if Sora's even managed to block it..."

There was a pause as all three thought about it, and when they reached similar, logical conclusions, a collective shudder in that went through the three's spines.

"Yeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaah... I think we should practice NOT making killer rebounds now..." Sora suggested. His friends immediately agreed.

"**Cure~!**"

For some reason, instead of the springy breezy scent accompanied by the spell when Sora cast it, Kairi found it to be more like a tangy ocean smell. The scratch on his arm, which he got earlier during practice when, true to their worries, the new pebble they were practicing on got through Sora's own spell, instantly healed, instead of taking a second or two to fully heal through.

"Woah~" Sora gasped. Kairi's initial worry over the spell when she noticed it had 'wrong' smell was instantly abated. But this fact seemed somewhat irrelevant, though curious.

"Hm... Sora, when Donald or Mickey cast Cure, was it different as well?" Riku inquired.

"Well... yeah. Donald's kinda smelled like a freswater spring, and the King's was more of a garden-y one. Why?" Sora answered, still somewhat preoccupied with staring at where the scratch was. No matter how hard he looked, nothing was left there that would indicate an injury.

"Hey Rox! Didja feel that earlier?" He asked his Nobody.

_Yea, it felt kinda tingly and cool. It felt nice, actually..._ Roxas answered his Other. The whole time, Roxas gave advice about how training should go, as he had more formal training from the Organization. In fact, their session so far was tamer than his own. Maybe the fact there was less people and that they all had some degree of empathy for other people's well being helped. He remembered the time he and Axel tried to make a new, flashy skill for themselves and ended up blowing up a whole section of the Castle That Never Was.

_"That was stupid of you two!" someone laughed, their sides aching from too much laughter. " Xemnas is soooooo gonna KILL you guys!"_

Roxas blinked. Where the heck did that come from?

Riku's inquiry broke Roxas' train of thought. "So basically everyone's just different?" Sora replied with a shrugh and an "I guess..."

For a moment, just for barely half a second, Sora thought Riku looked relieved. But it was so brief that he decided it was just his imagination.

"Hey, let's make Kairi the team healer! I mean, most of the stuff I read have a healer, usually a girl, that's supposed to be epically good at the stuff! Like Kairi!" Sora suddenly suggested.

"Aren't those healer chicks usually lame?" Riku deadpanned, sparing a glance at Kairi, who caught on faster than he did and had already flushed an angry crimson.

Sora only had time to squeak out a small "Oops-!" before Kairi started throwing stuff at his general direction, taking great offence at the percieved insult.

AND THEN THE WHOLE WOLD EXPLODES THE END

...

I'm SO SORRY! I couldn't help it XD

Sora: Ceeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeef, don't leave us hanging, what happened next?

Me: No idea yet, I just felt like posting what I already had to prank everyone. It's April Fools, remember?

Riku: Oh GOD NO.

Me: Anyways, the rest will be out pretty soon. And I really do mean soon. Now that I have no more classes to annoy me with, I'm free to write! So stay tuned!

Kairi: And try to keep out of my way while I practice! Uh... **FIRE!** *someone is set on fire*

Me: OH GOD WHY AM I BURNING WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?

Riku: Please kill me...

Sora: See ya! CEF STAY STILL SO I CAN **ICE** YOU!


End file.
